You are the salt of the earth... You are the light of the world

"You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men. You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

"Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven."

- Matthew 5:13-20

In yesterday's reading, Jesus gave us the Beatitudes of the Sermon on the Mount. Seated as a rabbi teaches, He taught the blessings of righteousness, right-relatedness, in a kind of divine exchange or economy, how we are blessed in a life of discipleship - even if those blessings are not obvious to all. See Sermon on the Mount - The Beatitudes. Today we continue with the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew's Gospel, a great collection of Jesus' teachings.

"You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men." After Jesus teaches the Beatitudes, the blessings that belong to those who follow Him, He begins to give us a picture of what such disciples are to the world. Salt and light are the words - the metaphors - He chooses and teaches us to be. Salt is symbolic of many things, among them is the notion of covenant. It was a preservative -- and for the ancients came to have symbolic value of covenant. My study bible points out that to "eat salt" with someone meant to be bound together in loyalty. So first of all, Christ's disciples are those who are the "salt of the earth" - who are bound in covenant, who hold these precepts and carry them. They also "flavor" the world - not just a preservative but one that seasons. And salt is also a necessity for life. But Jesus speaks here primarily of salt's flavor. It becomes necessary for a good life, to season life in this world, give it zest, make it palatable. Life is not merely for endurance, but it is also for joy. It is this goodness, He teaches, that makes life good in the world. Without it, what worth is left?

"You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven." Light gives guidance, so that all may see. It illumines and enlightens. My study bible says that light is a symbol of God, "who is the true, uncreated Light. In the Old Testament light is symbolic of God, the divine Law, or Israel in contrast to the Gentiles." Of course Jesus will call Himself the "light of the world" and taught His followers to become "sons of light." Repeatedly using this metaphor of light, He taught also to "make your whole body full of light." He, as Son or Logos, is the light shining in the darkness. So the great source of light - also a necessity for life - illumines us, and we, in turn, are to be a source of illumination for the world. In this way, we return glory to God the Father, making the sacramental circle we discussed about the blessings in the Beatitudes (in yesterday's reading).

"Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven." In this passage, Jesus assures His Jewish followers that He not only upholds the Law but fulfills it in Himself. What has come before is the full foundation of what He is about to deliver into the world. He fulfills the Prophets by carrying out what is foretold about Him. My study bible notes that Jesus also fulfills the Law by "granting righteousness -- the goal of the Law -- to us." To exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, it seems to me, goes to the teachings we were reading in Mark's Gospel last week. Righteousness is a fulfillment in the Law of God that is written on the heart. It centers on the depth of relationship to God. This doesn't forgo the observance of what is good in the society, in the Law that teaches right-relatedness, but it goes deeper into love. It solidifies the depth of relationship with God, forming a bond in the heart that enables us to become "pure in heart" (as the Beatitudes teach).

Jesus, in essence, is giving more depth to what is already known, and adding dimensions. The fulfillment that He speaks of is a fullness that becomes more dense and more dimensional than previous ideas of righteousness. He doesn't neglect the Law, and in His life He is a son of the Law and fulfills the Law Himself, but He also teaches a righteousness that goes to the heart of the commandment of love. He teaches us the fulfillment of relationship. To be "salt" and "light" is to take our savor and our light from relationship to God, to Him - and the Companion or Comforter He will send to us. We carry this with us into the world, and it becomes the flavor and the illumination of life. It is a bond, a promise, a covenant with all of us which He affirms in today's reading. How do you carry that salt and light within you? How do you share it with the world? How does its flavor give savor to your life, make it worthwhile, give you values you wouldn't otherwise have - and add the same to others? What light can you shine that reflects back to your Father in heaven in the divine economy Jesus teaches us here and in yesterday's reading, the Beatitudes? Look to the blessings He teaches, and salt and light your life with them, as they extend those blessings to others. What does it mean to exceed the righteousness of the scribes and the Pharisees? Let us remember the living dynamic of that relationship within ourselves, and what it brings to the world. It is the light of life, and the salt we need for life.